Last week, The Kitchen, the famed non-profit performance and visual arts space in New York, celebrated its 40th anniversary by honoring Philip Glass, the Chairman of its Board of Directors, in a gala benefit at New York's Capitale. The event included performances by Vijay Iyer Trio, Nico Muhly & Tim Fain, and International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), which can be heard on the forthcoming Nonesuch release of John Adams's Son of Chamber Symphony.

The gala also included the premiere of a short film by Matt Wolf, which you can watch below, looking back on the organization's history of supporting innovative artists in the fields of music, dance, theater, video, film, and literature, most notably experimental, interdisciplinary work in the early years of artists’ careers. The film includes interviews with Glass, Laurie Anderson, Rhys Chatham, Eric Bagosian, Bryce Dessner, and others, along with photos, and audio and video footage of performances from throughout the Kitchen's 40 years, including early sets from Alarm Will Sound, Bill T. Jones, Miranda July, Beastie Boys, and Talking Heads.

"We're talking about a small place," Glass remarks in the video, "a place to share ideas, a place to show work, a community in the warmest, complete sense."

"New York needs this kind of place," says Anderson. "And things that are necessary survive."

Watch the video here:

A Place for Artists: Reflecting on The Kitchen at 40 from The Kitchen on Vimeo.